With advances in communication technology, consumers have grown accustomed to greater and greater convenience in conducting business transactions as well as personal errands. Such convenience is tied to having a computer and associated networking infrastructure (e.g., router with broadband access), which has enabled a host of on-line commerce activities. For example, users can readily access banking information and initiate bill payments using a home computer. Also, these on-line activities are largely confined to purchasing goods and services. Other than bill payment or traditional on-line commerce capabilities, little effort has been expended to integrating other consumer transactions relating to such ubiquitous services as utility services (e.g., water, electricity, gas, etc.). As part of their operations, utility providers measure utility usage by a residential home or a commercial building, and typically, generate utility bills that are sent to consumers on a monthly basis via snail mail. Unfortunately, with these types of services, consumers are not able to manage any aspect of their account and service.
Additionally, service providers, e.g., communication and media providers, are challenged to continually develop innovative services to remain competitive and profitable.
Therefore, there is a need for an approach to monitor utility usage with more convenience, while enabling a new source of revenue for service providers.